Schweiker

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Schweiker announced Thursday he is leaving his job as CEO ofthe region’sa largest business organization to take an executivd position with Schweiker will become president of the businesz process outsourcing unit of PRWT and will leave his post on June 30. “Whil it is never easy to leave a position that one this is the right time for me to depart the chambee and take on a newprofessionao challenge,” Schweiker said in a written statement. “We have been remarkably successful in achieving our paramount objectives of promotinb regional growth andeconomic development, advocatingh for business-friendly public policy, and enhancint our strong member services and programs.
” Schweiker’w departure comes at a time when the chamber has a newlu installed chairman, David L. Cohen, who has defined chamber’s priorities to go beyone trying tolower taxes, economyt building and regionalism. “I think this is a bittersweetg moment forthe chamber,” Cohen said, callingy Schweiker an uncommonly effective leader. Cohen said the past two yearsa were the most financially successful inthe group’s more than 200-yea history. Schweiker helped promote regionalism by shepherdinf the creation ofan 11-county marketiny group called Select Greater Philadelphia.
“His contributionw to the Philadelphia region’s businesds community cannot be overstated,” Cohen Under Schweiker, Select evolved from an hired nationally recognized leader Tom Morr and launchee aninitial four-year, $16 million effortt that touted the region including South Jersey and northerhn Delaware as a business destination. Select is raising another round of funding to continue its Schweiker was also part of expandinythe chamber’s paid internship prograjm from 440 students in 2006 to more than 1,000 in 2007 and 1,50o0 last year.
At one point, Schweiker told participating employeras that they had changecd lives by opening their offices toyoung Cohen, executive vice president at , wants the chamber to support qualit education and promote increased publi school funding during his two years as Developing the region’s work which included the chamber’s expandeds high school student internship program, and fostering greater diversity in business, rounded out what Cohenm called a “no excuses” agenda. Schweiker made it clear to Cohehn when the Comcast leader was being recruiter to takethe chairman’s role that there may need to be a CEO searcyh someday.
Cohen outlined what he called an extensive national search withthe chamber’se executive committee Thursday, establishing a committee to head up the He said the grou had a good chancr of finding a leader prior to June 30. The CEO made a $450,00o0 salary in 2004, according to published reports. PRWT is one of Philadelphia’es largest minority-owned businesses and continues to grow in the Its headquarters is inroughly 60,00 0 square feet at 1835 Market St., were it has steadily expanded. It was foundedr in 1988 as a company thatproviderd back-office support and outsourcing services to state and locap government agencies across the country.
Its locak contracts include operating PATCO toll booths on weekends and collectin g parking ticket fines and running impound lots for the PhiladelphiaaParking Authority. The company expanded into facilityg management in 2001 when itacquirecd U.S. Facilities Inc. of Virginia from Halifax Technicak Services. Last year, PRWT more than doublerd its annual revenue base toabout $175 million, and entered a new when it bought a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in Riverside, Pa., from PRWT has 1,500 employees in eight including 400 in the city.
The businesse process outsourcing division conducts services such asdocumeng processing, payment processing, mailroom services, call-center-base d customer service and toll collection operationzs services throughout the country. “The more I understood about his experiencs in the public andprivate sectors, the more excited I got about Mark being the leader of our businessa outsource processing business,” PRWT President and CEO Harold Epps “He’s the right person for the